Cardinal Pedro Barreto Jimeno Archives

Peruvian cardinal says Vatican pondering dissolution of scandal-ridden lay group

Mar 11, 2020

In a recent interview Peruvian Cardinal Pedro Barreto has said he believes the Soldalitium Christianae Vitae (SCV), a controversial lay group founded in Peru, ought to be dissolved, and suggested the Vatican feels the same way.

By Elise Ann Allen

Synod bishops to renew Vatican II’s “Pact of the Catacombs” for the poor

Oct 19, 2019

Early Sunday morning in Rome, some of the 180 bishops participating in the Oct. 6-27 Synod of Bishops on the Amazon will make a pilgrimage to the Catacombs of Domitilla on the outskirts of Rome to renew a promise by bishops at Vatican II to live like the poor.

By Inés San Martín

Sights and Sounds: Is it time to switch the preposition in Synod ‘of’ Bishops?

Oct 9, 2019

A Synod of Bishops was conceived as a chance for the home office, i.e., the Vatican, to hear from its middle mangers around the world, i.e., the bishops. For some time, it’s been evolving into a chance for the middle-mangers in tandem with the home office to hear from two other constituencies.

By John L. Allen Jr.

At day two, Amazon synod agrees on questions, not on answers

Oct 8, 2019

Though it is only day two of this month’s Synod of Bishops on the Amazon, participants have nearly unanimously flagged a regional priest shortage and the need for a clear ministry for women as key issues up for discussion, yet while the questions seem to be clear, the answers are far from it.

By Elise Harris

Top synod cardinal says critics deserve attention and prayer, but not a veto

Oct 7, 2019

One of three prelates tapped by Pope Francis as presidents of this month’s Synod of Bishops on the Amazon has urged participants to fear neither forging new paths for evangelization in the region, nor criticism of these novelties, saying critics of the synod’s agenda should be prayed for.

By Elise Harris

Key papal aide, new cardinal not worried about Amazon synod ferment

Sep 22, 2019

Soon-to-be Cardinal Michael Czerny, one of Pope Francis’s top collaborators inside the Roman Curia who serves as both the public face of Francis’s agenda for migrants and refugees and who is playing a key role in organizing next month’s Synod of Bishops on the Amazon, has said he is not afraid of criticism of the event.

By Elise Harris